Although Nara is quite a small city, compared to Kyoto, Tokyo or Osaka, it is still one of the most visited cities in Japan. As the previous capital of Japan, Nara has dozens of historical places and buildings: castles, temples, shrines, Japanese gardens etc. The most popular sight in Nara is probably Nara Park, famous for its friendly deer and significant shrines, but we don't have to forget about the other tourist attractions.
Besides the numerous historical buildings, the history of Na... [ read more ]

Sapporo, a major city in Japan is mostly visited during winter. Only some thousands of people visit this great city during spring or summer, which, compared to the millions of people coming here for the Snow Festival is quite a low number. The most popular tourist attractions of Sapporo are totally separated from the world-famous Sapporo Winter Festival.
Like every other large city, Sapporo also has dozens of places which worth a visit. Several parks, Japanese gardens, temples, shrines, h... [ read more ]

Nowadays manga, the 100% Japanese 'comic book' is very popular all around the world. Not only kids, but adults enjoy the animated adventures of given characters as well. The topic of a manga can be action, adventure, sports, romance, comedy, drama, sci-fi, suspense, horror, business and almost everything you can imagine.
Tokyo, the capital of the Land of the Rising Sun has hundreds of manga shops; which are also called otaku shops. If you happen to be in Tokyo and you are a fan of these c... [ read more ]

Although Kyoto is known as the city of Hanamachi, Tokyo also has its own geisha districts. These are namely Shinbashi, Asakusa, Yoshicho, Kagurazaka, Hachioji and Mukojima. They are called collectively the 'Tokyo Roku Hanamachi'.
The teahouses where geisha entertain the visitors have very strict rules, and one of these is that only Japanese people can participate on a Geisha event. It is very difficult and almost impossible for tourists to participate on such an evening, but if you know t... [ read more ]

The city of Nagasaki is known for the tragedies of WWII all around the world. Since then, Nagasaki has recovered and became one of the most popular, important and most visited cities of Japan. Millions of tourists travel here every year to see the several memorial places and buildings of the city.
Although the city has other sights as well, the memorial museums are the most acknowledged attractions of Nagasaki. If religion stands close to you, you may be interested in visiting the shrines... [ read more ]

Osaka, Japan's third largest city is one of the most visited areas of the Land of the Rising Sun. The city has dozens of amazing sights, such as the outstanding Osaka Castle, but other destinations attract tourists as well. Not only architectural, cultural and natural sights (parks, Japanese gardens), but historical and artistic attractions also enrich the beauty of the city.
Officially, Osaka has 10 museums; all of them are focusing on different areas, such as art and science. The museum... [ read more ]

Festivals, or Matsuri are vital parts of Japanese culture. Dozens of events are celebrated monthly and millions of tourists visit these wonderful festivals. All of Japan's festivals are equally significant and important, but not all of them are as colorful, vivid and energetic as the others.
More than 30 Japanese festivals are held and celebrated only in July; therefore this is the richest month of the year from the point of view of festivals. For tourists, it is kindly recommended to vis... [ read more ]

Though Kabuki Theaters are vital parts of Japanese art and culture, they are not as acknowledged as the other symbols of the country, such as sushi, geisha or sake. Kabuki theater is a typically Japanese art form. It presents performances which are well-combined with dance and excellent costumes and make-ups. This avantgarde art provides a show where only male actors are performing.
Kabuki, or the amazing Japanese dance-drama show was born at the beginning of the 17th century and it is st... [ read more ]

Although the majority of Japan's festivals are held during summer, June has very few traditional matsuri. Compared to July or August, this month is quite poor from the point of view of festivals; but these few events are really enjoyable and interesting.
The most important Japanese festivals in June take place in Toyko, Yokohama, Kyoto, Osaka, but smaller cities, such as Iwate or Hamamatsu give home to very popular events as well. Undoubtedly, the Takigi Noh festival from Kyoto is the mo... [ read more ]

Kobe is one of the most important cities of the Japanese Archipelago. As the fifth largest city of the country, Kobe is a significant tourist destination: it has many touristic sights, such as parks, Japanese gardens, museums, shrines, temples, towers, etc.
At the moment, Kobe has eighteen museums, with a large variety of themes. The most popular museums of the city have art, science, history, maritime, kids and fashion as their main theme. If you happen to be in Kobe, and you have some f... [ read more ]